When a child is first learning a new physical activity, it is often necessary for an adult to provide support until the child develops a sense of balance in performing the new activity. Support harnesses for the purpose of supporting children are known. Various designs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,537,154 (Kay); U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,860 (Hutchings); U.S. Pat. No. 5,074,795 (Clark); U.S. Pat. No. 5,435,272 (Epstein); U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,188 (Heinrichs); U.S. Pat. No. 5,634,439 (O'Brien).
In Kay '154 a harness design suitable for a pet such as a dog or cat is disclosed. This design, said to be adaptable to children, provides a handle running along the spine of the wearer, extending approximately between the shoulder blades down to the lower back. Kay '154 is not suitable for providing support in certain types of activities since grasping the handle would tend to cause the child to lean too far forward.
Hutchings '860 provides a body harness comprising an adjustable chest band and two adjustable straps running from either shoulder, under the crotch area, and then back up to the shoulder of the wearer. The two straps continue to extend from the shoulders and form loops at their ends to provide handles for the adult providing support for the child. This design may cause undue pressure in the crotch area. A similar design is proposed in Epstein '272 wherein the harness comprises two loops which are worn between the legs and loop over either shoulder. These loops are joined at the back such that the loops resemble a "FIG. 8". An optional waist belt can be provided to secure the two loops in place. A handle is connected to the top of each loop at the shoulder region. Again, this design may cause undue pressure in the crotch area.
Heinrichs '188 provides a simple design comprising two loops connected at a grasping region. The two loops are of approximately equal size and when worn as intended, with one loop going under the arms and across the front of the chest and the other loop going under the arms and across the back and the grasping region being directly over the head of the child, the loops will tend to constrict movement of the child's head, and may also impair the child's peripheral vision.
Finally, in O'Brien '439, a belt design is disclosed where the belt is worn around the mid-section of the child and secured at the front of the chest and two loops are formed at the back of the belt to provide a handle for the adult providing support to the child. This design suffers from the same drawback as noted in Kay '154, i.e. grasping the handle at this location will cause the child to tend to lean too far forward for certain types of activities.